FREMONT — Three teenagers — one just days past his 16th birthday — will be tried as adults in the killing of Union City resident Michael Patrick Sanchez.

Sanchez, 20, was stabbed multiple times after leaving a party in Union City’s Decoto district about midnight Friday. He was found in his family’s driveway on Fourth Street and was pronounced dead at Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley early Saturday morning.

All three turned down the offer to be represented by a public defender, saying they prefer to hire their own attorneys. They are scheduled to be formally charged and to enter pleas onWednesday. Judge Dan Grimmer ordered them held without bail.

State law allows for juveniles 16 or older at the time the crime is committed to be tried as adults for certain crimes. Toruno turned 16 on June 30.

While the three teens remain in Juvenile Hall near San Leandro, Sanchez’s family members struggle to cope with the sudden loss of their loved one. Funeral services are expected to take place early next week but have yet to be finalized.

“It’s a pain we haven’t experienced. Nobody (in our immediate family) like this has died,” said Sanchez’s uncle Fernando Sanchez. “He didn’t deserve what he got.”

Union City police have said the crime — the city’s first homicide this year — may have been gang-related, but they would not release more details, saying the case still is under investigation.

“We still would like to talk with anyone with knowledge (of the incident),” police Sgt. Tom Haselton said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Union City Police Department at (510) 471-1365.

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